By The No-Holds Bard
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Six weeks has passed since Battle Ground Pro showcased one of its best and worst shows in company history; best in terms of production, matches, and show as a whole, but worst in terms of unruly and obnoxious fans that create an uncomfortable environment. But it was time for BiG Pro to return to Newhall once again, and, as the bill said, there was definitely some “Big Trouble in Little Newhall.” No, Kurt Russell didn’t revive his role as the loveably absurd Jack Burton to ward off the Lo-Pan of Newhall, but things did get pretty hairy all around—even before the show started. So we’re all hanging around outside the venue and the line wasn’t too long yet, but out came Christian Rosenberg, who, if you don’t remember, spoke to everyone at the last show about how he conducted some of the backstage interviews for the DVD’s. Anyway, he figured he’d give everyone a treat before the show by interviewing “The Wholesome Hero” J.T. Hyatt about his match later that evening with “The Role Model” Preston Scott. So Hyatt came out and Christian asked him about his match and Hyatt cut a pretty good promo about how Scott was a coward and couldn’t take him on one-on-one because he’s always got his “fat girlfriend” (referring to Scott’s bodyguard and sometimes tag partner Ray “Boom-Boom” Murillo) stepping in to save him. He goes on to say that he won’t tolerate it anymore because he knows he’s got his buddy Foob Dogg to help him out if Murillo steps in. Then out of nowhere Scott comes from around the building with a chair, cuts through the crowd and nails Hyatt in the back of the knee. The whole crowd erupted and security came out to handle the situation. Scott kept nailing Hyatt with the chair as some little girl screamed for Foob to come out and save him, but he never did. So Scott continued his assault by throwing Hyatt headfirst into the side panel of someone’s car. Then he chaired him one more time in the leg and walked off, stating (not verbatim), “Have a good night, everyone! Enjoy the damn show!” Several crewmembers helped Hyatt back into the building and then they let us in.
The crowd looked pretty light at first, which was a bit scary, but in my opinion, I think the actions of some certain audience members at the last show scared away some of the families that usually attend these shows, and I don’t blame them. To start us off, ring announcer Ben Tomas came out to address the fans. He said he hated to start things off on a sad note, but went on to mention the recent passing of Dynamite D. All the boys came out from the back and quietly got in the ring. Tomas asked everyone to stand for a 10-bell salute. Then Lil’ Cholo, Bo Cooper and the Stepfather, respectively, said a few words about their fallen comrade, which brought tears to a few of the guys’ eyes. After the well-deserved applause it was time to begin the wrestling. Up first was “Marvelous” Markus Riot defending his Battle Ground Pro Maximum Championship against Infernal, who won the right for the title shot at the last show when he defeated Chimaera and “The New York Knockout” Nikki in a triple threat match. Infernal took forever to come out, as always, but had his pal Willie Mack with him when he finally came through the curtain. When Riot came out he did a backflip off the turnbuckle and Infernal made fun of him. He asked him to do it again, so he did, and Infernal fell to the mat in “amazement” and just rolled around a bit.
Anyway, the match began with a tie-up and the two seemed to be off to a quick start as Riot hit a hurricanrana sending Infernal to the outside. Riot got out to the apron and pretended to pounce on Infernal, but said “Boo!” instead, which caused Infernal to shriek. Riot then hit a double stomp on the back of a cowering Infernal. Riot re-entered the ring as Infernal made his way around the ring trying to shake it off, but then Riot just bolted and dived through the ropes before Infernal knew what was coming. He followed up with chops to Infernal all around the ring, before he finally escaped into the ring. Riot, however, wasn’t about to let up as Infernal sat on his knees, begging him to stop. Riot went for another hurricanrana but Infernal caught him and powerbombed him down and went for a pin. Riot kicked out but Infernal kept things going in his favor, chopping his back, then sending him into the corner with chops to the chest. He followed that up with a nasty clothesline off the ropes. The crowd showed their favor for Riot as they chanted for him to make a comeback. Infernal kept on Riot with chops to the chest while applying a chokehold with a knee digging into his back. Then he and his pal Willie Mack helped him to drag Riot by the legs crotch first into the ring post. Infernal then taunted the fans and wasted a bunch of time when he could have capitalized on his weakened opponent. Riot attempted a comeback but Infernal whipped him into the turnbuckle. He missed the splash as Riot ducked through the ropes. Riot got on top and came off with a boot to the face of Infernal, who fell all the way into the opposite corner. Riot hit a dropkick to the face, then followed with a snap suplex and went up top once more. Infernal got up to him and stalled him a bit, but Riot knocked Infernal to the mat. He then hit a double-stomp, ala Low-Ki (Senshi), and followed up with a few clotheslines, forearms and a kick to the face. But Infernal attempted a comeback with a German suplex on Riot and followed up with chops. He went for a clothesline but Riot ducked and hit a Pelé kick. Riot followed up with a reverse hurricanrana and a Michinoku driver to get the pinfall for the win.
Winner: And still Battle Ground Pro Maximum Champion, “Marvelous” Markus Riot, via pinfall.
The next bout featuring BiG Pro’s only undefeated wrestler, “The Silent Assassin” Joey Harder, taking on one of SoCal’s best rookies in Chimaera. However, Chimaera would have a difficult time, with Harder being a stable member of Commissioner Jason Bennett’s, along with the Dogs of War (Xtreme Loco and Crayz). When Harder and the gang hit the ring Bennett got on the mic and scolded referee Tony Cutlip for Harder not having the MAX Title as well as the Dogs not having the tag titles. Cutlip, having been in Bennett’s pocket for quite some time now, cowered before his boss and assured him he’d do his best to keep things in their favor.
The match began with a tie-up as Harder gained control with a waistlock takedown. He immediately followed up with an armbar but Chimaera reversed it. This followed back and forth with holds and reverses as both opponents displayed their fine mat wrestling skills. Soon enough did Chimaera attempt a pinfall did referee Cutlip make a slow count. Chimaera’s frustration led to Harder gaining control. He mounted Chimaera’s backside and landed several nasty forearms to his head. Then he switched positions and delivered a few knees to the head. Harder picked him up, still holding in the headlock, but Chimaera escaped with a couple hip tosses. A frustrated Harder rolled out to consult with his crew. As he re-entered the ring he must have got some good advice because he gained control right away. But then Bennett distracted the ref while Harder just manhandled Chimaera, who attempted a comeback and was met with another slow count on his pinfall attempt. At this point Harder caught Chimaera in a neverending headlock. Chimaera tried his best to escape but Harder had a tight grip. It didn’t matter what he did he just could not break it. He even managed to roll over but Harder would not let up. I believe he had the headlock on him for five minutes straight until Chimaera finally broke it when he was able to stand and lift up Harder for a side suplex. He followed up with a dropkick, a hurricanrana and then an Irish whip, but Harder came off the ropes grabbing hold of Chimaera and took him down for a Crossface, which he then turned back into a headlock. By this time Chimaera’s neck was giving way and he tried to break it by reaching the ropes, but when he got to the ropes both men fell out of the ring. Crayz came around to distract Cutlip as Loco blindsided Chimaera. Cutlip kept distracted by marking out for Supreme, who was sitting front row, along with the new XPW-based fanbase that took up a whole section of the audience. Chimaera found enough within himself however to attempt another comeback. He nailed a gutbuster and followed with a clothesline and a pin, but Cutlip got away with another slow count. Harder then returned with a DDT suplex and failed to get the pinfall. Chimaera blocked his attempt at a German suplex, and then reversed it into a full nelson backbreaker, but Harder was able to return with a back suplex and failed another pinfall attempt. Chimaera nailed an enzeguiri and Bennett realized things weren’t going his way. He distracted the ref once again as Chimaera mounted the top turnbuckle so that Loco could knock him off. Harder took advantage of the situation and got the headlock back on Chimaera, but it was too much this time; Chimaera tapped.
Winner: “The Silent Assassin” Joey Harder w/Commissioner Jason Bennett and the Dogs of War, via submission.
After the bell rang Harder put his headlock back on Chimaera as the Dogs came in to help out in the beatdown. Bo Cooper and Brandon Nitro came out to make the save. Their mutual hatred for Joey Harder (as well as the rest of Bennett and his stable) is no secret. Bo sent Harder into the turnbuckle and Nitro came at him with a perfect handspring elbow. Harder fell in the corner and Bo motioned for the Bronco Buster, but just as Bo was about to squash him Loco pulled Harder out of the way. Bo got on the mic and said that he was going after Harder. Then Nitro said he was gonna go after him, too. Bo asked Nitro who he thought he was gonna go after next, to which Nitro naturally asked, “Who?” Bo responded with, “Bennett!” Then, of course, he said he was gonna go get some beer afterwards.
Next up on the card, Disco Machine vs. Foob Dogg. The match began with a tie-up as Foob gained control early on with a wristlock. Disco managed to reverse it however, but Foob got him back with a headlock. Disco then reversed that, but Foob pushed him away into the ropes. Disco came back strong but could not knock the big man down. He finally got him however with a dropkick. Though that would not keep Foob down as he returned with a heavy clothesline and followed it up with a headbutt and knife-edge chops. He sent Disco into the corner but missed the splash as Disco wisely moved out of the way. Disco took control, hitting a missile dropkick off the top and then went to work on Foob’s arm. Foob, however, shoved him away and the two began exchanging fists and chops and ended with Foob delivering a clothesline to Disco. He followed with an elbow and an Irish whip, which met Disco with a Samoan drop and then followed that with a nice T-bone suplex. Foob then attempted a sunset flip but couldn’t pull Disco down for the pin. Somehow Disco managed to drag Foob to the ropes, at which point he rolled backwards out of the sunset flip and dropkicked Foob. Disco attempted a comeback but Foob nailed him with a few headbutts and followed with a Crossface, but Disco got to the ropes in time. Both competitors exchanged a few chops; Foob gained immediate control but Disco turned it around quickly as he hit a frogsplash from the top. He couldn’t make the pin however so he went for his signature chokeslam backbreaker. Foob, wise to this, reversed with a rollup, but Disco shifted his weight and got Foob’s shoulders down to the mat as he held his tights for the pinfall.
Winner: Disco Machine, via pinfall.
The next match featured the return of an injured wrestler. Well, kinda. Devilishly Sexy was back! This time it was Diablo, teaming once again with Ronnie Salami, but “Sexy” Sonny Samson was back, albeit with a cast on his leg. He played cheerleader for his teammates, but before that he got on the mic and said how he injured his “third leg.” He also assured the fans that Devilishly Sexy will go to the top of the tag team division in Battle Ground and was upset that the fans cheered for their opponents, The Young Bucks (Slick Nick and Mr. Instant Replay), who then came out to Hanson’s “MMBop” as they usually do. This is where the women in the audience go completely apeshit. And with all the trash talk from Samson, when Hanson hits, all three of them can’t help but dance along.
So the match began with Nick and Diablo… and if you really wanna know the rest I suggest you go buy the DVD. I made a conscious decision to put down my pen and enjoy this match. I’ll be honest: I love what the Bucks do in the ring, as well as D.S., and I apologize to the Bucks for not reviewing their match here, but there is just no possible way I could call this match, at least on paper. I would have done no justice to any of them if I missed half of what any of them did just to write down one or two moves. I would have done no justice to myself for the same reason, because I surely did not want to miss one single bit of action in this match. However, I did make sure I got the finish down. Towards the end of the match, when D.S. wasn’t looking so hot, Samson handed his walking cane to Ronnie Salami and then went to distract the ref. Salami went after Nick with the cane, but Nick moved and he hit Diablo instead. Nick dropkicked Samson, who stood up on the apron and then rolled up Salami for the pin.
Winners: The Young Bucks (Slick Nick and Mr. Instant Replay), via pinfall.
After the match Samson got back on the mic and challenged the Bucks to a “sex”-man tag next month, which would consist of all three members of Devilishly Sexy (assuming Samson is good to go) against the Bucks and a partner of their choosing. Then, in one of the most random and hilarious moments in wrestling, Samson assured everyone that Devilishly Sexy is gonna bring autism back. I’m laughing now just writing this.
Next up was a grudge match between “The Role Model” Preston Scott and “The Wholesome Hero” JT Hyatt. Scott came out, sans bodyguard Ray “Boom-Boom” Murillo, just wearing some jeans and one of his Role Model T-shirts that proclaimed on the back “I Am Not A Jacked Up Monkey.” He came out with Hyatt’s little bottle of milk, too, mocking “The Wholesome Hero.” Then Hyatt’s music hit—interestingly enough it was “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves; which is interesting because it’s upbeat, he couldn’t walk because Scott beat his leg with a chair, and he is billed from New Orleans, Louisiana and the name of the band is Katrina and the Waves—but Hyatt was nowhere to be seen. Apparently the beating he took before the show made him unable to compete. But Scott got on the mic and said that he heard Hyatt had a nasty fall outside before the show but didn’t really know too much about it. Then he told the referee to start the match and if Hyatt didn’t show then he’d be counted out. Ben Tomas announced him one more time and his music restarted, but again, nowhere to be seen. Finally he came limping out. As he slowly got up on the apron Preston Scott just kneed him right off to the floor. He continued his assault on Hyatt outside the ring but rolled him back in. Hyatt showed a little bit of courage in going after Scott, but Scott returned with a chop block to Hyatt’s bad leg. Forget the notion that there might be a legitimate wrestling match here because the damage had already been done, and for Scott it was all about inflicting pain. So he went and got a steel chair and banged up Hyatt’s knee a few more times, then even stomped on it. The ref just threw the match out right there.
Winner: “The Wholesome Hero” JT Hyatt, via disqualification.
At this point it was just a massacre. Scott then fixed Hyatt’s leg in the chair and stomped it. Where was Foob? Everyone was wondering what was going on with Foob since Hyatt said that Foob had his back. Scott put his foot on Hyatt’s chest and counted to three himself. Finally, Foob came out to make the save, but I wouldn’t call it a save. Hyatt was already fucked up and Foob only came out in time to witness the damage. It looked like Katrina and the Waves hit “The Wholesome Hero” bad. Foob didn’t even chase off Scott; Scott calmly left the ring and stood outside combing his mustache while Foob attended to Hyatt, then he just strutted back to the locker room. Hyatt got on the mic and said that Scott showed his true colors, but that’s not why he loves him (my words). He said Scott couldn’t get away with a clean win on his own, that he’s always got his “fat girlfriend” (referring to Murillo) or that he resorts to underhanded tactics in order to come out the victor. Then he challenged Scott for a match next month, two out of three falls, and everyone would be banned from ringside, including his own buddy Foob Dogg.
Then it was time for intermission. I guess this is a good time as any to point out that there was a massive XPW-related audience, mostly due to the fact that the day following the show was the funeral for Dynamite D and everyone was in town. Most of them were sitting near me, but the easiest ones to spot were Supreme (who had quite a loud mouth), Vic Grimes and Pogo the Clown, and I didn’t see “The Hardcore Homo” Angel until after the show. I also saw a big dude who I was told was Big Schwag, as I didn’t know his name. But Ben Tomas pointed out sometime later that also in attendance were Kris Kloss, “White Trash” Johnny Webb, Impact Adam and Ryan Stone, plus others. I gotta tell ya, I was never big into XPW but went to a few shows years ago, and I remember most of these guys, but never did I ever think I’d sit in the same audience with a large number of their roster!
So anyhow, back to the show, it was time for a match I was looking forward to all night: the number one contender match for the Battle Ground Pro Maximum Title between Lil’ Cholo and The Human Tornado (who went by “Hollywood” Human Tornado because of his heel turn and massive belt buckle that said—what else—PIMP). So Tornado came out first and told everyone that Bennett gave him an opportunity to get some gold in BiG Pro, but first he had to go through “Lil’ Trollo.” He kept mouthing off as he climbed up and recline on the turnbuckle, ala Eddie Guerrero. So Cholo came out and got on the mic and told Tornado the match was now falls-count-anywhere. And as he was talking to Tornado, Tornado gave him a couple little slaps in the face. It was wild. He kept taunting him with pats on the cheeks while he was still talking. And Cholo wasn’t doing anything about it! Finally he just laid one on him and knocked Tornado reeling. He grabbed Tornado’s PIMP belt and whipped him all around the ring on the outside. Tornado got his belt back and started whipping Cholo with it. As they got in the ring Tornado started to choke Cholo, then hit him with a spinning heel kick. He went for the cover but couldn’t get the pin. Then he threw Cholo back outside once again. He got up on a table that’s always stationed against one of the walls and did a moonsault off it onto Cholo. It looked pretty nasty but they both seemed okay. Cholo turned the tables, however, and whipped Tornado severely with that belt again. Then he asked everyone, “You wanna see street!?” to which the crowd clamored. Then Cholo dragged Tornado through one of the other doors that is normally unused. A bunch of people, mostly kids, followed them outside. By the time I got out there by using the other door, I saw Tornado standing on the sidewalk and Cholo jump from a railing on top of him, maybe three feet off the ground. The two competitors continued fighting on the sidewalk for a bit before they took it back inside. Cholo got him back in the ring and hit the 187 (or as I like to call it the inverse Cop Killa) and got the pin for the win.
Winner: And new number one contender for the Battle Ground Pro Maximum Championship, Lil’ Cholo, via pinfall.
Cholo got his applause and left the ring, only to be greeted by Markus Riot with the belt over his shoulder. The two men nodded at each other and shook hands, for they will be meeting next month for that belt. Meanwhile, in the ring, Tornado was grabbing his knee in pain as several referees and security were helping him out to the back. It turns out that he busted his knee up bad from that moonsault off the table early on in the match.
Next up was the semi-main event that featured The Stepfamily (The Stepfather and the Red-Headed Stepchild w/“Drunk” Uncle Ronnie) versus The Santino Brothers (Battle Ground Pro Heavyweight Champion “The Rock Superstar” Kaos and Mongol w/Jezebel). Two months ago The Stepfather earned the right to face Kaos for the BiG Pro Heavyweight Title by eliminating 24 other competitors in a Royal Rumble-style match and last month he nearly had the belt around his waist if it wasn’t for Kaos’ partner Mongol who came in to interfere and disqualify Kaos. In such a scenario, Kaos retained the title, and Stepfather retained his dire urge to exact revenge. So he enlisted his own partner in the Red-Headed Stepchild to take on the Santino Brothers. As the Santinos made their way to the squared circle there was a huge mixed reaction. Everyone who came to BiG Pro shows knew that Kaos and Mongol were heels, but the Santinos had their family taking up a huge portion of the audience in the XPW crowd.
The match started off with Stepfather and Mongol, but they both kind of circled each other before any physicality ensued. Then Mongol tagged Kaos, who did the same thing, and then tagged Mongol back in. The crowd was getting restless, but Stepfather took action before the Santinos could stall any longer and took down Mongol with a waistlock. He tagged in Stepchild who hit Mongol with some chops and followed up with a dropkick. Kaos interfered just enough so that Stepchild could get distracted and Mongol took advantage. He tagged in Kaos and both men double-teamed Stepchild. Kaos took control by clotheslining Stepchild and then nailed him with a suplex into a backbreaker. It was sick. He then tossed Stepchild over to Jezebel who, from the outside, choked him over the bottom rope. Kaos and Jezebel have gotten a little messy with this lately because they keep doing it right in front of the referee, and this time was no different. But Kaos always grabs the ref and says, “Whaddya gonna do?” and turns him away. At this point “Drunk” Uncle Ronnie went after Jezebel but was too drunk to defend himself because Jezebel kicked his ass, sending him running back to his own corner. Kaos tagged Mongol in who hit Stepchild with a power slam and went for a pin, but Stepfather interfered to break the count. But as the referee was scolding Stepfather for interfering, in comes Kaos to interfere himself with a moonsault. Mongol went for the pin but Stepfather broke the count again, and again the referee scolded him for doing so. Mongol tagged Kaos and the Santinos double-teamed Stepchild a bit before Kaos landed a frogsplash from the top. He went for the pin but Stepchild kicked out. Then Stepchild attempted a comeback after he came off an Irish whip with a knee lift to Kaos. Kaos tagged Mongol, who came in and dropped several knee drops on Stepchild. But Stepchild had enough and was desperately trying to make a tag. Mongol tried to hold him to stop him, but Stepchild got the tag to Stepfather, just as Kaos was distracting the ref. Stepfather came in and took out Mongol but the ref told him he didn’t see the tag and told Stepfather to get out. Mongol made the tag to Kaos, who threw Stepchild outside. Then Kaos, Mongol, and Jezebel started to kick the living crap out of Stepchild. Kaos even grabbed someone’s water bottle and nailed Stepchild in the head with it. When Uncle Ronnie came around Kaos chopped the shit out of him, and then finally Stepfather made his way around and he and Kaos had a lengthy chopfest outside the ring as both men chopped each other back and forth until Stepfather sent Kaos reeling with a devastating chop. Meanwhile, in the ring, Mongol was taking Stepchild apart. He nailed a Perfect Plex pin but Stepchild kicked out. Mongol then put the sleeper on Stepchild but he managed to escape and even attempted a comeback, going for a pinfall after a Hoganesque leg drop. Kaos interfered and put his own sleeper hold on Stepchild, but Stepchild once again escaped and finally got the tag to Stepfather, who came in and sent Kaos into the corner and followed up with a knee to the face. Mongol attacked Stepfather but Stepchild took the fight with Mongol outside the ring. But Mongol’s brief attack let Kaos take control of Stepfather momentarily as he had Jezebel get in the ring. Kaos held Stepfather from behind as Jezebel slapped him in the face a few times. Then it was Kaos’ turn. Jez held Stepfather from behind as Kaos came to spear him. But Stepfather moved and he took out Jez! Kaos tried to help her back up but as both got to their feet Kaos saw Stepfather coming for him with a spear and moved and now Stepfather speared Jezebel! Stepchild got back in to help Stepfather double team on Kaos with a move that reminded me of the 3D and Stepfather got the pin on Kaos for the win.
Winners: The Stepfamily (The Stepfather and the Red-Headed Stepchild w/“Drunk” Uncle Ronnie), via pinfall.
As the Santinos made their way to the back Stepfather issued a challenge to Kaos for the BiG Pro Heavyweight Title next month in a Trailer Park Trash Match, which Stepfather promised would have barbwire-wrapped pink flamingos, and assured everyone that there would be no more lawn ornaments in Newhall by the time May 12 th came.
Now it was time for the main event Battle Ground Pro Tag Team Title match between the champs, The 300% Brawlers (“Brawlin’” Bo Cooper and “Mr. 300%” Brandon Nitro) taking on the challenge of former tag champions The Dogs of War (“X5” Xtreme Loco and Crayz), led by Commissioner Jason Bennett. There have been all kinds of bad blood with all these men, but it mostly starts with Cooper’s hatred for his boss, Bennett. The reason Cooper teamed up with Nitro was because Nitro had a long-running feud with “The Silent Assassin” Joey Harder, who recently joined up with Bennett’s crew; and Harder was causing problems for Cooper as well, like causing him to lose the BiG Pro Heavyweight Title, as per the instructions of Bennett. Not only that, but Cooper is no stranger to the Dogs of War, seeing as it took his pairing with Nitro to take the titles away from the Dogs. However, they both have still yet to get their hands on Joey Harder to exact any kind of significant revenge; like earlier in the evening they barely got to him. Bennett is making sure that no one touches his golden boy. But this time, at least, at “Big Trouble in Little Newhall,” the Brawlers aimed to keep their titles and embarrass Bennett and his Dogs again. Oh, and I forgot to mention—dirty Tony Cutlip was referee for this bout.
The match began with Nitro and Crayz in a collar-elbow tie-up, which ended with Crayz getting the best of Nitro. However, Nitro reversed and caught Crayz with a neck wrench, then nailed him with a spinning heel kick. Crayz tagged Loco and Nitro tagged Cooper. The two men tied up but Loco ended that with a heavy chop to Cooper’s chest. Then Coop chopped Loco and knocked him down and followed with a power slam. Crayz came in but Coop handled the situation with a double noggin knocker that sent Crayz rolling outside. Bo tagged Nitro and held Loco in position as Nitro came flying over the top rope with an elbow and then went for the pin. The ref scolded Bo for not leaving the ring. Nitro was taking Loco apart but when he went for the pin referee Tony Cutlip was issuing slow counts again. This was not gonna be a walk in the park for the Brawlers. Nitro came against the ropes but Crayz tripped him from the outside. This let Loco take advantage before tagging in Crayz, who hit Nitro with scoop slam. Crayz began to work on Nitro’s arm and got him in a camel clutch. Nitro broke out but Crayz remained in control as he sent Nitro with an Irish whip into the corner. He came after Nitro but Nitro got him with an elbow. He went up top and came off with a kick to Crayz, which he followed up with a pin, but there was Cutlip with his slow counts. Bennett distracted the ref this time as Crayz nailed Nitro in the crotch to slow him down. He tagged in Loco who maintained control on Nitro. But somehow Nitro managed to come back as he went outside on the apron and flew over the top nailed Loco with a stunner. He got the tag to Bo Cooper who came in and cleaned house with a clothesline to Crayz and chops to Loco in the corner. Loco fell in the corner and we all knew what was coming. Bo was going for his Bronco Buster and shouted out “Flying teabag!” He nailed the Bronco Buster and the fight escalated to the outside. Too many things were going on at once. Bo was taking apart Loco on the outside as he had the audience move while he threw Loco into a few rows of chairs. Back in the ring Nitro was taking apart Crayz as well and got a clean pinfall on him, but when Cutlip got to a two-count he faked an injury and pulled away. Nitro got pissed off and superkicked Cutlip square in the jaw and knocked him out cold. Nitro went back for a pin on Crayz and out came Rick Knox. Knox counted the pin but Crayz kicked out. At this point Bo brought Loco back in the ring. Crayz managed to take control of Nitro and nailed him with a sick backbreaker as Cooper hit Loco with the Spicoli Driver. Knox made the count where Bo had covered Loco, and mid-count, Cutlip comes to and makes the fastest count ever where Crayz covered Nitro. Both Bo and Crayz got 1-2-3 counts.
Winner: Split decision, via double pinfall.
Knox handed the belts to the Brawlers, but Cutlip took them away and handed them to the Dogs. Bo grabbed a belt back and Crayz grabbed a belt. Suddenly there was a scuffle in the ring and someone knocked down Rick Knox. I guess there was no final decision, but each team walked away with one belt in their possession. So Bo got on the mic and said, “Belts or no belts, we’re still the champions.” Then he issued a challenge to the Dogs once again. But this time he wanted to get Cutlip involved. He said if the Dogs team up with Tony Cutlip, then they’ll face the team of the Brawlers and… Rick Knox!
Overall, another great show put on by Battle Ground. The addition of having an interview segment gone bad outside the building before the show was one of the best things I think I’ve ever seen at BiG Pro. There should be more things like that. Back in October of last year when Bo teamed with Lil’ Cholo to take on the Santino Brothers they did a great spot that took the fight outside the building with the fans. I thought that was the best thing ever. I always wanted to see a fight go outside. Then Cholo and Tornado did it as well at this show. I’d like to see them take a fight into the bar! I bet they wouldn’t allow it because everyone would rush the bar and they’d have to clear it out of patrons beforehand, but still… more things like that are what continue to make BiG Pro awesome. I also liked the tribute to Dynamite D in the beginning of the show. I was aware that another promotion running that same night was doing something similar, but seeing the picture of their whole roster in the ring paled in comparison to see how many people came out in support of D at Battle Ground. Unfortunately the whole XPW gang arrived during the first or second match and missed the tribute, but even having them around was wild. Supreme was getting involved a lot, shouting things and whatnot, but Pogo and Vic were just sitting there calmly paying attention. I thought it was a bit humorous.
The opening match I was sure was going to steal the show seeing as Markus Riot has been on a hot streak for several months now, putting on several Match of the Night matches, but for some reason this match couldn’t live up to his other ones. Whether it was because the match happened right after the D tribute and everyone was kind of down or because Riot and Infernal were just having an off night, the match just didn’t have that same spectacular spirit that most of Riot’s matches have. Chimaera, however, is a young upstart that is virtually new to the SoCal indy scene and I have enjoyed what I’ve seen of him in the ring. Pitting him against Joey Harder, another favorite of mine, was sure to be a classic. For what it’s worth I dug the match quite a bit, but the interference of everybody was a bit of a nuisance. I did like, however, that Chimaera tapped out to a simple headlock of all things. It was so anti-climactic and it was a breath of fresh air to see something like that again. I’m not sure what the point was for the Foob/Disco match. Maybe it was just the XPW crowd and Supreme, who for some reason loved Disco Machine, but Disco was getting a bigger pop than Foob was. All the little kids still like Foob Dogg, but Disco is slowly getting over with the fans. It’s good to see that someone like Disco can gain the respect of the fans for his in-ring work, but I know he can turn it back around and be a heel again if it means getting the fans to cheer for Foob. My Match of the Night goes to the Bucks/D.S. match. I say this in every review, but I love what the Bucks do in the ring. Forget the Hanson and the pretty-boy looks that all the girls go wild for… they rock in the ring and that’s all there is to it. Given the style of Devilishly Sexy most of their matches are comedy matches, and even though there were several comedic spots in this match the Bucks made sure it was more about the wrestling. Diablo and Samson are a great pairing, but Diablo and Salami dare I say are even better. But having all three of them there was the best and I hope from now on that every D.S. match has all three of them involved somehow. The Hyatt/Scott match wasn’t really a match, but that’s okay. Given their pre-show spot I don’t think many of us expected there to be a full on wrestling match and frankly I’m glad there wasn’t. Having Hyatt limp out and take a beating once again in the ring still plays on his character that he’s trying to be a hero and still gave Scott some major heat with the fans, and having the match thrown out was wise too in keeping with the story that Hyatt was injured before the show. I also liked the Cholo/Tornado match, but probably for the wrong reasons. If Tornado hadn’t been injured I bet they would have gone a little longer and did some better stuff. I am certain in my mind that these two could tear the house down together when both are in the best of health. I wish Tornado luck for a speedy recovery and hope the injury is not serious. I really liked the Santinos/Stepfamily match. I think Kaos performs better when he’s being cheered for. I really dig Kaos this was one of his best matches so far in BiG Pro. The tag title match was interesting. The pairing of Bo and Nitro works quite well because of the contrasting styles. They just need to wrestle different teams once in a while to have some better matches. This match was mostly for the purpose of continuing a story and feud between Cooper and Nitro and the whole of Bennett’s crew.
So far for the next show, which is scheduled for May 12 th , there will be a six-man tag that consists of The 300% Brawlers and Rick Knox taking on the Dogs of War and Tony Cutlip, The Stepfather challenging the BiG Pro Heavyweight Champion “The Rock Superstar” Kaos for the title in a Trailer Park Trash Match, another six-man tag with all three members of Devilishly Sexy taking on The Young Bucks and a partner of their choice, a 2-out-of-3 falls match between “The Wholesome Hero” JT Hyatt and “The Role Model” Preston Scott, and hopefully “Marvelous” Markus Riot will defend his BiG Pro MAX Title against Lil’ Cholo, and I’m looking forward to all of them. Congrats to BiG Pro for another great show and the possibility of another one next month.
For more info: www.myspace.com/battlegroundpro and http://www.battlegroundprowrestling.com
